Fit for Purpose: Your Guide to Better Health, Wellbeing and Living a Meaningful Life

Richard Pile

Apr 2021 · Sold by Harper Inspire

About this ebook

As a society we have never had so much advantage and yet been so disadvantaged by this very same society which we have built for ourselves, by ignoring our basic needs when it comes to sleep, nutrition, movement, relaxation, relationships and purpose in life. We face a rising tide of physical health problems, such as obesity and diabetes, and mental health issues such as loneliness and depression. Our medical model is a broken, disease-based one which is not fit to meet our needs, particularly when it comes to preventing health and wellbeing problems. Just as secular society is often guilty of dualism when it comes to wellbeing, focusing on the physical but ignoring the spiritual, the faith community may make the same mistake in reverse, focusing on the spiritual whilst ignoring the physical. We need to combine all these different aspects to enjoy true wellbeing and a satisfying life.

The book explores what it means to be fit for purpose in life: physically, mentally and spiritually. It describes the problems we face, both individually and as communities, and succinctly summarizes the evidence for the key factors that determine our wellbeing. It lays down a challenge to avoid treating physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing as separate. Using knowledge and experience of the worlds of medicine, behavioral change and Christian faith, Dr. Pile presents real life case studies and provides practical recommendations for making changes whether for ourselves, our faith community or wider society.

About the author

Ricahrd Pile is a GP with over twenty years of medical experience. Raised in Manchester, he went to medical school in Nottingham and completed his GP training in Oxfordshire. He specialises in cardiology and lifestyle medicine. He is involved in training, appraising and supporting other doctors and commissions health services. He is married with four children, the oldest of whom has a learning disability and severe epilepsy. As a result of his professional and personal life experience, Richard is a passionate advocate of lifestyle medicine. He believes that our conventional medical model is disease-based and broken. He advocates a health-based model which offers us the chance to take control of and improve our lives. A blogger and podcaster, he has also been published in the British Medical Journal and national media. He also presents at conferences on the subject of wellbeing and lifestyle medicine. He is the clinical GP lead for Thrive Tribe, an award-winning national healthy lifestyle service provider and is co-founder of Living Life Better, an organisation that helps people overcome challenges and achieve their ambitions. Outside of work, Richard enjoys running, biking, dog walking, reading, listening to music, practising mindfulness, drinking proper beer and spending time with his friends and family.